Politics

Obamacare will cost Wisconsin more than it saves, secretary says

The state health secretary told Congress on Thursday that Wisconsin will pay more for its health care programs for the needy under the looming federal health care law but doesn't have hard financial figures yet on his claim.

Dennis Smith, the point man on health care for Gov. Scott Walker's administration, argued that the federal law commonly called Obamacare will cost Wisconsin taxpayers more than it will save through an expansion of joint state and federal Medicaid health programs for the poor.

That's because it won't provide enough additional reimbursement to the state to cover the full number of people who will sign up for programs such as BadgerCare Plus in 2014, said Smith, secretary of the state Department of Health Services. In testimony before a health subcommittee of the Energy and Commerce Committee in the Republican-controlled U.S. House of Representatives, Smith said the federal law will also raise the administrative costs of running Medicaid and determining who is eligible for it.

Supporters of the health care law responded that Smith is ignoring both cost savings of the law and its benefits to the state's uninsured citizens and health care providers.

About Jason Stein

Jason Stein covers the state Capitol and is the author with his colleague Patrick Marley of "More than They Bargained For: Scott Walker, Unions and the Fight for Wisconsin." His work has been recognized by journalism groups such as the American Society of News Editors, the Society of American Business Editors and Writers, and the Association of Capitol Reporters and Editors.